For radiocarbon dating to be possible, the material must once have been part of a living organism. This means that things like stone, metal and pottery cannot usually be directly dated by this means unless there is some organic material embedded or left as a residue.

What can be dated by radiocarbon method?

Samples that have been radiocarbon dated since the inception of the method include charcoal, wood, twigs, seeds, bones, shells, leather, peat, lake mud, soil, hair, pottery, pollen, wall paintings, corals, blood residues, fabrics, paper or parchment, resins, and water, among others.

What Cannot be dated using carbon 14?

Carbon-14 is a radioactive isotope of carbon. The short half-life of carbon-14 means its cannot be used to date extremely old fossils.